The US Department of Justice has fired another attack at Apple these days, in a long battle over unlocking an iPhone.
The Department of Justice is accusing Apple of “false” arguments and creating a diversion in the San Bernardino case.
“Instead of complying, Apple attacked the All Writs Act as archaic, the Court’s Order as leading to a ‘police state,’ and the FBI’s investigation as shoddy, while extolling itself as the primary guardian of Americans’ privacy,” the government wrote in its brief.
“Apple’s rhetoric is not only false, but also corrosive of the very institutions that are best able to safeguard our liberty and our rights: the courts, the Fourth Amendment, longstanding precedent and venerable laws, and the democratically elected branches of government,” it continued.
As imagined, soon after during a call with reporters, Bruce Sewell, Apple’s top attorney responded to the governments’ brief, saying:
“In 30 years of practice, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a legal brief more intended to smear the other side with false accusation and innuendo. I can only conclude the DOJ is so desperate at this point it’s thrown all decorum to the winds.”
These declarations are the latest attacks between Apple and the FBI, which have been ongoing since 16 February.
As a reminder, the FBI wants Apple to build a special version of its mobile software to help them access data on an iPhone used by one of the two terrorists who killed 14 people in the attack in San Bernardino. Apple has declared that it has already helped the FBI and the court doesn’t have the power to force it to build a special version of its iOS. So, this has turned quickly into an ongoing debate over privacy.
To be added that the government also accused Apple that it has some kind of secret agreements with the Chinese government in saving data of Chinese users in this country. Moreover, DOJ also claimed that the Cupertino company received similar requests on data access from the Chinese government and Apple accepted to provide them the information demanded.
As a response, Apple’s chief counsel, Bruce Sewell, said that these accusations are “deeply offensive” and an “unsupported unsubstantiated effort to vilify Apple rather than confront the issues in the case.”
Bruce Sewell also declared that Apple has added security features to its phones to keep users safe from spies and hackers. Regarding the insinuations about China, he also said that the FBI cannot be trusted because conspiracy theories claiming that J. Edgar Hoover, former FBI Chief, ordered the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. In the end, he asked the government to stop taking cheap shots at Apple and try to focus on the important issues of the case. He also wants the DOJ to treat all parties with respect.
“Rather, this case is about the Department of Justice and the FBI seeking through the courts a dangerous power that Congress and the American people have withheld: the ability to force companies like Apple to undermine the basic security and privacy interests of hundreds of millions of individuals around the globe,” Apple declared in its 65-page document.
